Thank You for #PPCCHAT, Matt Umbro!

September 22, 2017

Once upon a time, there was a wet-behind-the-ears young marketer, (we’ll call him “This Guy”), who was handed management of his companies PPC advertising activities…ALL OF THEM…after the previous SEO/SEM manager rode off into the sunset. Always up for a challenge, “This Guy” quickly found that while having the freedom to test different strategies was nice, getting advice from a team of (at the time) one made for some frustrating moments. This is where Matt Umbro and #PPCCHAT (hosted every Tuesday on Twitter at noon US Eastern time; site here) changed the game.

Internet marketing circa 2011 was really the “Wild West”, lacking (to a degree) any standardization of best practices or community. If your company decided they needed to grow their business using PPC, well, it was sink-or-swim time baby! Matt, through #PPCCHAT, brought together an entire industry of marketers together at a time when it was needed most.

Through the years, “This Guy” participated some, lurked more :), and, most importantly, got a crash course in all things Online Marketing from the best minds in the industry. With Matt at the helm, these weekly “tweet-ups” quickly grew into a must attend and become an invaluable resource for marketers of all skill levels. It also helped to connect people who might otherwise never communicate, even while attending all the same events, creating lasting friendships. Sort of a “6 degrees of #PPCCHAT” thing going on.

You deserve credit for that, Matt, and for much more. You took a simple medium (Twitter) and used it to make an intimidating job much more welcoming and helped to instill a sense of community that I am sure James, and the other hosts, will help to grow and prosper. You’ve always been a gentleman in any online interactions, and I wish you much success as you broaden your mastery of all things digital. Congratulations on your new addition (sleep now while you can :)). Here’s to much success in all you do; just don’t abandon Twitter as I know I (we) may have to pick your brain from time.